This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, INC. and The Coca-Cola Company, all opinions are mine alone. #NewWayToSparkle #CollectiveBias
Spring and summer have always been my favorite times of the year to entertain. Between the sun, the perfect temperatures, and nature bursting with fresh blooms, it is easy to get excited about spending time with friends and family. I am a big outdoor person, so naturally I hold all my gatherings in the back yard where we can take in all the beauty of the world around us. I love coming up with fun themes and creative tablescapes, and I have a gorgeous garden inspired picnic to share with you!
This party was one of my favorites to create so far, and I love the combination of earthy colors and simple foods. I always follow the same formula when putting together a tablscape, starting with deciding on a theme, then building my color palette, developing the menu, and finally filling in decorative accents at the end. This theme is obviously gardening, and I really tried to infuse the “country garden” feel into every part of it. The colors I used were greens, earthy tan, clay, berry reds, orange, and accents of gold to give it a little kick.
For the menu, I mostly served fresh fruits and veggies that are found in my garden. Mine isn’t ready for harvest yet, of course, but I have all the same things planted in my beds, which I think is pretty cool. I don’t normally feature a ton of foods when I host parties, so I make sure what I do have is a nice balance for my guests. For munchies I had a berry bowl, some fresh strawberries, hummus, carrots, and celery sticks. I also made strawberry and basil cream cheese tea sandwiches, which are super simple but so delicious!
Lastly, and I think these are so adorable, I made carrot and hummus planter pots! These are so incredibly easy to make, and here is what you will need:
- 15-20 mini carrots
- A few toothpicks
- Sprigs of fresh parsley
- Hummus
- Parchment paper
- Mini pots
- Rinse off mini carrots, and poke a hole in the end of each one with a toothpick down to 1/2 inch.
- Cut off sprigs of parsley, and place the stems in each of the carrot holes.
- Cut a circle out of parchment paper for each clay pot you have, making it around 5 inches in diameter. Stuff your circle inside your pot.
- Drop a scoop of hummus onto your parchment paper, then stick three carrots in each pot.
- Set out at your party, and see how everyone loves them!
For refreshments, I picked up a few cases of DASANI® Sparkling slim cans from Target which were on a temporary price cut of $2.99 per 8-pack. I chose one of the new flavors (Strawberry Guava) and Tropical Pineapple for this, but they offer a lot of other flavors as well. Besides Strawberry Guava, they also have new White Peach and Blood Orange flavors which sound amazing!
I love sparkling beverages, and I think these go perfectly with a bright spring day! They aren’t heavy like a lot of other drinks, and they pack the perfect hint of fruity flavor that isn’t overpowering. And yes, I did serve them on a bed of floral ice cubes. They were the easiest thing in the world to do, and they instantly take my table to a whole new level. To create them, just snip off a bunch of small flowers from a wildflower bouquet, fill up an ice cube tray with them, pour water over the top, and freeze. That’s it!
To tie the spread together, I used the other half of my wildflower bouquet and attached single flowers in a row to the backing behind my table. Doesn’t it look fabulous?
For parting gifts, I set out a few little planter packs, which featured seed packets and a bag of dirt in the bottom. I love takeaways for any party, but I don’t like making a big fuss over it, so something simple like this is perfect. I love how simple it all is, but also how much the little accents really take it over the top! Here are some more shots from the setup:
You can find more fun spring inspiration with DASANI here and pick up DASANI Sparkling at your local Target.
